The Gaza Monologues at NEYT

A new series of Gaza Monologues on Saturday, Dec. 21, at New England Youth Theater in Brattleboro, will reflect the continuing struggles, joys and daily lives of Palestinians of Gaza, many of whom began recording their experiences as teenagers.

The event is also a celebration of Palestinian life and culture. Doors will open at 5 p.m. for a community event with tabling by local groups and organizations and Palestinian art and crafts from Hebron. The readings start at 7 p.m.

“Each narrative is a testament to the resilience, pain, and complexity of human emotions
in times of genocidal war by the Israeli occupation,” according to a statement on the website of Ashtar Theater, the Palestinian theater that began documenting these voices in 2010. “These voices reflect not only the struggle for survival but also moments of profound courage, love, and even joy that persist despite the loss of loved ones, homes, and the essence of what it means to feel human. They remind us that even in the darkest times, the human soul seeks light and meaning.”

The Brattleboro event is an opportunity for area residents to hear a new set of monologues that have been written over the past 15 months as Palestinians in Gaza have endured what Amnesty International and other human rights groups call genocide – the systematic effort by Israel to kill and remove Palestinians from Gaza.

In a report this month, Amnesty International documented how Israel has “carried out acts prohibited under the Genocide Convention, with the specific intent to destroy Palestinians in Gaza. These acts include killings, causing serious bodily or mental harm and deliberately inflicting on Palestinians in Gaza conditions of life calculated to bring about their physical destruction.”

“Month after month, Israel has treated Palestinians in Gaza as a subhuman group unworthy of human rights and dignity, demonstrating its intent to physically destroy them,” said Agnès Callamard, Secretary General of Amnesty International.

Addie Mahdavi, one of the local event organizers, said the monologues represent “the raw, heart-wrenching realities of people who have so far managed to survive this ongoing genocide.”

The monologues read on Dec. 21 have not been part of either of two previous readings staged locally, in November 2023 and last week at Sandglass Theater in Putney. “Connecting the new monologues to the original Gaza Monologues provides an opportunity for historical depth and shows continuity in documenting the lived realities of those in Gaza,” according to Ashtar Theater producers.

“The new accounts reflect lives torn apart by bombings, displacement, and the brutal hardships of living under an inhumane siege. They speak of loss, fear, hope, and the search for safety and peace in a world where an exterminating war has overshadowed the simple joys of everyday life.

“The authors of these stories are neither merely victims nor passive survivors. Every moment poses a life-threatening danger, and they continue to face the relentless uncertainty of today and tomorrow.”

Ashtar Theater began collecting testimonies written by young Palestinians in 2010 after Israel bombed Gaza. The writers have added new testimonials after every Israeli assault on the beseiged enclave, in 2012, 2014, 2021, and the current Israeli genocide that began in October 2023.

Palestinian authorities have identified more than 44,000 Palestinians killed during the current onslaught, the majority of them women and children. Human rights, medical, and aid organizations estimate the actual death toll could be five times that number, including hundreds of journalists, more than 1,000 medical personnel, and humanitarian aid workers.

“This is a way for our community to support artists in Palestine, hundreds of whom have been arrested or killed by Israel because their work is such a powerful call for freedom,” said Samia Abbass, another event organizer.

In addition to attending the readings, Brattleboro residents can take meaningful local action by signing a petition, which will be available at both locations, to place a referendum on the March ballot to make Brattleboro an apartheid-free community. The referendum would affirm Brattleboro’s support for freedom and equality for all peoples and ending Israeli settler colonialism, occupation, and apartheid.

New England Youth Theater is at 100 Flat St., Brattleboro. Suggested donation is $5-25, with all proceeds benefiting Ashtar Theater. NEYT is not a co-sponsor of the presentation.

Masks are required and will be available at the doors. Please send questions to gazamonologuesbrattleboro@gmail.com. Those interested in watching a livestream of the performances can email that address to request the link.